Saturday, February 9, 2013

1913: The Inside of the Cup by Winston Churchill

No, not that Winston Churchill.

This Winston Churchill

WHO?

The author of The Inside of the Cup
was, at the time, more famous than the future British Prime Minister. The American Winston Churchill was born in
St. Louis, Missouri in 1871. He attended
the United States Naval Academy and, upon graduation, was made an editor of the
Army and Naval Journal. In 1895, he was
made managing editor of Cosmopolitan Magazine (the same magazine that “now
survives as a harrowingly explicit sex manual”1). He published his first novel, The Celebrity,
in 1898, to moderate success. His second
novel, Richard Carvel, was released in 1899 and placed third on the bestsellers
list. From 1899 through 1913, Winston
Churchill appeared on the annual bestsellers list eight times. Five of those times, he was in the number one
spot. He became a millionaire and a
household name. The Inside of the Cup
was the last book of his to reach the top of the bestsellers list.

He got involved in politics in the
early twentieth century, and got elected to the New Hampshire state legislature in 1903 and 1905. He failed to win the
Republican nomination for governor in 1906.
In 1912, he ran as the candidate for the Progressive Party (colloquially
known as the Bull Moose Party, after its founder Theodore Roosevelt), but lost
to Democrat Samuel Felker. The novel I’m
reviewing deals heavily with the political and social values espoused by the
Progressive party.

So what's this book?

The Inside of the Cup was originally
published serially in Hearst Magazine in 1912 before being released in book
form in 1913. The title comes from a biblical
quote: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye make clean the
outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and
excess.”

2

Despite being written over a century
ago, The Inside of the Cup is surprisingly relevant today. The story centers around John Hodder, an
orthodox Anglican rector from a comfortable suburb who is recruited to lead the
congregation of St. John’s, a prestigious chapel in “one of the largest cities
of the United States of America, and of that portion called the Middle West.” St. John’s had been built on Dalton Street in
what was originally an upscale part of town, but in the past decades, had
become the slums. However, it is still
frequented by the rich and powerful. Through
his interactions with the heads of industry and the poor of Dalton Street,
Hodder’s worldview drastically changes.

Theology is, unsurprisingly, a major
aspect of the novel. The first chapter
features a conversation between members of the Waring and Goodrich family which
sets the tone for the theological debates to follow. The aim of the novel’s theology can be
inferred from this quote on page eleven:

“So far
as I can see, the dilemma in which our generation finds itself is this, - we
want to know what there is in Christianity that we can lay hold of. We should like to believe, but, as George
says, all our education contradicts the doctrines that are most insisted upon…
We have the choice of going to people like George, who know a great deal but
don’t believe anything, or to clergymen like Mr. Hodder that demand that we
shall violate the reason in us which has been so carefully trained.”

Although initially obstinate, Hodder
eventually agrees with the above sentiment and sets to create a new
understanding of religion, putting him at odds with Eldon Parr, one of the
nation’s most powerful businessmen. The main
focus of the novel is Hodder’s ‘conversion.’
As with practically any book that delves into the can of worms that is
theology, the book occasionally becomes encumbered by it. Its saving grace, however, is the similarity
of the issues in the novel to the issues of today. Regardless of religious affiliation or lack
thereof (in the spirit of full disclosure, I am not religious in any sense),
anyone who has an intellectual interest in theology could gain some insight
from reading this.

The cast of supporting characters and
their subplots are the best part of the book.
Although most of the focus is on John Hodder, he is not so much of a
personality as he is a set of beliefs that we watch change throughout as he
becomes enlightened. It is a testament
to Churchill’s writing prowess that these small characters are so complete, and
tend to steal the show whenever they pop in.

Why was it so popular at the time?

The Inside of the Cup was written in
what is known as the Progressive Era in the United States and propounds many of
the ideals of the Progressive party including women’s rights (including
suffrage and minimum wage), an eight hour workday, a social security system,
direct election of senators, and more.
The novel deals with all of these to some extent and further shows how
they not only do not contradict religion, but are a necessary part of it.

Specifically, the novel calls out the
unfair practices of major trusts. Abuse
of workers at the hands of large companies was endemic. If you think corporations are powerful today,
this was nothing compared to how it was at the time. From Thomas Patterson’s textbook “We the
People” (ninth edition):

“After
the Civil War, the Supreme court also
gave nearly free rein to business. A
majority of the Court’s justices were proponents of laissez-faire capitalism,
and they interpreted the Constitution in ways that restricted government’s
attempts to regulate business activity.
In 1886, for example, the Court decided that corporations were “persons”
within the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment, and were thereby protected from
substantial regulation by the states.

“The
Court also weakened the national government’s regulatory power… When the
federal government invoked the Sherman Antitrust Act (1890) in an attempt to break up a monopoly on the manufacture of
sugar, the Supreme Court blocked the action, claiming that interstate commerce
covered only the transportation of goods, not their manufacture… However,
because the Court had previously decided that state’s regulatory powers were
limited by the Fourteenth Amendment, the states were not allowed to regulate
manufacturing activity in a significant way.”

3

Public
sentiment was incited, and a book that helped them express and expand upon
their discontent was bound to receive a large audience.

Why haven't I heard of it?

Winston Churchill’s popularity
declined not long after this book was published. He wrote two more novels in that decade, plus
one non-fiction and a play. In 1919, he
quietly left the sphere of public writing, only releasing one more book in 1940. He passed away in Florida in 1947. Since then, the other Winston Churchill has become considerably better known, as a public figure and as a writer.

Should I read it?

If you have an interest in theology,
academic or personal, there’s a lot to gain from this book. The showdowns between opposing parties are
very tense and exciting, though they are few.
If you can handle some slow parts, I’d recommend giving it a shot.

You can read The Inside of the Cup on Project Gutenberg.Books with similar themes:Native Son by Richard WrightGod Bless You, Mr. Rosewater by Kurt Vonnegut

Enjoyed your review and like the structure you've laid out. I don't think I've heard of this book before and it's relevancy today sounds like one of those interesting bits of synchronicity that happen upon us.

I'm enjoying your blog immensely. One thing would improve it in my opinion: could you include the page counts of the books in your reviews? I'm always interested to know how "long" a book is, especially since you're reading them consistently at one per week. Thanks.

I've been looking for a list of books I might find for free on Kindle and your list might work for that. I just finished reading 'The Inside of the Cup" and rather enjoyed it. As you suggested, I was amazed at how some of the arguments of the rich in the book (like Mr. Parr) sounded so like arguments made today by rich conservatives. The long conversations between Mr. Hodder and the beautiful Allison about religion were breathtaking. Did people actually used to talk to each other like this. Your summary of the book was good. My only quibble is that I don't think St. John's was a Catholic Church.